West Nile Virus

Description of virus that causes the disease.

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Viral Specificity:

(Part of the body/ type of tissue type/ other hosts affected.
Explain HOW the part of body/tissue is affected.)

Symptoms and progression of the disease:

West Nile virus produces three different outcomes:

• asymptomatic infection
• mild febrile syndrome (West Nile Fever)
• neuroinvasive disease (West Nile meningitis or encephalitis)
• the ratio for these three stages is roughly 110:30:1

The second febrile stage has an incubation period of 2 to 8 days
symptoms of this stage include:

• drowsiness, pain in joints, rash, swollen lymph node, weakness

Rarer outbreaks

• spinal cord could get infected
• hepatitis, myocarditis, nephritis, pancreatitis

Common Methods of Transmission:

• mosquito's feed on infected birds
• mosquito's get West Nile Virus form Birds
• infected mosquito's feed on humans
• Asian tiger mosquito has been found to be a vector of WNV

Treatment and Prevention (if any):

• AMD3100 this drug was originally made for HIV but has shown promise against WNV
• there have been attempts to use ribavirin to treat infections
• Blocking Angiotensin 2 can treat the cytokine storm of WNV
• Blocking angiotensin 2 can also treat other virus's

Miscellaneous:
( Historical background if pertinent. Any unusual or interesting info? )

Resources accessed:

Wikipedia
CBC News-health-West Nile Virus